Deep South Editor Jim Van Anglen can be reached at 1-800-821-3737 or jvananglen@ap.org. Administrative Correspondent Rebecca Santana can be reached at 504-523-3931 or rsantana@ap.org. A reminder this information is not for publication or broadcast, and these coverage plans are subject to change. Expected stories may not develop, or late-breaking and more newsworthy events may take precedence. Advisories and digests will keep you up to date.

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GEORGIA (All times Eastern):

TOP STORIES:

ELECTION 2018-SECRETARY OF STATE-GEORGIA

ATLANTA — As a battle over the fairness of Georgia’s recent election for governor moves from the political arena to the courtroom, two men are locked in a runoff, with far less fanfare, to oversee the future of the state’s election apparatus. Republican state Rep. Brad Raffensperger faces former Democratic congressman John Barrow in a Dec. 4 runoff for Georgia secretary of state after neither garnered the more than 50 percent of votes required to outright win the Nov. 6 election. By Ben Nadler. SENT: 865 words. AP Photo.

STATE OF THE HELLBENDER

Researchers are donning wetsuits and wading into north Georgia streams to conduct an underwater search for giant salamanders known as hellbenders. The effort is part of a survey designed to get a sense of the state of the hellbender in the north Georgia mountains. WABE Radio reports that scientists have come to realize that the big salamanders might be in peril — and the federal government is now considering whether to protect them. Information from WABE Radio. SENT: 350 words.

AP MEMBER EXCHANGES:

GA-EXCHANGE-MACON PAINTER

MACON, Ga. — Walking through some of Macon’s most prominent structures, the history flows through the halls, but few people hear the story of the man responsible for those buildings and the beauty they still possess. Tony Long has been involved with painting and maintaining buildings since the 1950s, and he has won many awards for his preservation efforts including the Excellence in Preservation award at the annual Georgia Trust Preservation Awards ceremony in 2017. By Jenna Eason. The Macon Telegraph. SENT: 1072

ATLANTA — Rookie quarterback Lamar Jackson is poised to make his first start on the road as the playoff-contending Baltimore Ravens go for their third straight victory, facing an Atlanta Falcons team that has lost three in a row and looks all but finished in the NFC race. By Paul Newberry. Upcoming: 750 words, photos. Game starts at 1 p.m. EST.

College Football

FBC--COLLEGE FOOTBALL PLAYOFF

NEW YORK — An overview of who’s in, who’s out, and who’s controversial. By College Football Writer Ralph D. Russo. Announcement scheduled for noon ET. UPCOMING: 800 words, photos by 3 p.m.

FBC--BOWL DAY

A look at who is going to which of the 40 postseason bowl games. UPCOMING: 400 words, photos. Developing

— FBC--ORANGE BOWL. A look at who gets into the bowl in Miami, which this year is hosting one of the CFP semifinals

— FBC--SUGAR BOWL. A look at who gets into the New Year’s Day bowl in New Orleans

— FBC--PEACH BOWL. A look at who gets into the New Year’s Day bowl in Atlanta

SOUTH CAROLINA (All times Eastern)

TOP STORIES:

PRISON INDICTMENTS

COLUMBIA— The South Carolina attorney general says 17 people have been indicted for helping to smuggle drugs, cigarettes, cell phones and other contraband into state prisons. South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson on Friday announced the indictments in what his office described as “sophisticated and highly lucrative conspiracies” to smuggle large amounts of contraband into the South Carolina prisons. SENT: 280 words

AP MEMBER EXCHANGES:

EXCHANGE-HIGHWAY HONORS

COLUMBIA — Signs scattered along South Carolina’s roadways provide a who’s who of politicians past and present — for anyone driving slow enough to notice. More than 1,000 bridges, interchanges and stretches of highway statewide bear the names of local VIPs, according to a state Department of Transportation tally dating to 1925. Most of those designations occurred in the past few decades. By Seanna Adcox. The Post and Courier of Charleston.

IN BRIEF:

— SHIPWRECK ARTIFACTS-SALE— A submersible that helped retrieve gold from an 1857 shipwreck off the South Carolina coast three decades ago is for sale, along with the ship’s large, bronze bell and other artifacts.

— GOVERNORS MANSION-OPEN HOUSE— It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas at the South Carolina Governor’s Mansion. Gov. Henry McMaster is holding an open house at his house Monday starting at 5:30 p.m. to show off the Christmas decorations.

SPORTS

College Football

FBC--COLLEGE FOOTBALL PLAYOFF

NEW YORK — An overview of who’s in, who’s out, and who’s controversial. By College Football Writer Ralph D. Russo. Announcement scheduled for noon ET. UPCOMING: 800 words, photos by 3 p.m.

FBC--BOWL DAY

A look at who is going to which of the 40 postseason bowl games. UPCOMING: 400 words, photos. Developing

MONTGOMERY, Ala. — A historic trolley that’s been behind Montgomery’s Union Station Train Shed has moved to a new spot downtown with the aim of making it more visible to the public. The electric trolley was part of the “Lightning Route” — the first of its kind in the nation in 1886. The route was eventually discontinued, but the trolley car that dates to the pre-1900s still remains. Information from Montgomery Advertiser. SENT: 250 words.

AP MEMBER EXCHANGES:

AL-EXCHANGE-ROY MOORE ACCUSER

GADSDEN, Ala. — On a sidewalk in San Francisco in October, Tina Johnson felt free for the first time in more than a year. “People weren’t looking at me,” she said. Her sister, who was there with her, said she noticed it, too. By Anna Claire Vollers. al.com. SENT 1330 words.

AL-EXCHANGE-CIVIL RIGHTS CRIME-MARKER

GADSDEN, Ala. — Jerry Smith recalls being a 10th-grader in Collinsville, back in April 1963, when he and friends passed a man walking, with signs on his chest and back. “He was pushing or pulling some sort of cart,” Smith remembered. “By the time he was gone, I didn’t think any more about it.” By Donna Thornton. The Gadsden Times. SENT 978 words

IN BRIEF:

— ENERGEN-ART — An oil and gas exploration company is giving away its art collection as it vacates its corporate headquarters in downtown Birmingham. Energen Corp. says it will donate the artwork to the University of Alabama at Birmingham as it vacates the building where it’s been located.

— FARMERS MEETING — Former U.S. House Speaker Newt Gingrich is giving the keynote address at the annual gathering of state farmers.

SPORTS

College Football

FBC--COLLEGE FOOTBALL PLAYOFF

NEW YORK — An overview of who’s in, who’s out, and who’s controversial. By College Football Writer Ralph D. Russo. Announcement scheduled for noon ET. UPCOMING: 800 words, photos by 3 p.m.

FBC--BOWL DAY

A look at who is going to which of the 40 postseason bowl games. UPCOMING: 400 words, photos. Developing

— FBC--ORANGE BOWL. A look at who gets into the bowl in Miami, which this year is hosting one of the CFP semifinals

— FBC--SUGAR BOWL. A look at who gets into the New Year’s Day bowl in New Orleans

— FBC--PEACH BOWL. A look at who gets into the New Year’s Day bowl in Atlanta

LOUISIANA (All Times Central)

TOP STORIES:

LOUISIANA SPOTLIGHT-ANALYSIS

BATON ROUGE — So much for the holiday spirit. A new financial disagreement between Gov. John Bel Edwards and House Republican leaders is a reminder that just because a budget and tax deal was brokered months ago, no one should expect a newfound spirit of camaraderie between the two camps, particularly as the 2019 election year looms. The Democratic governor and the conservative House Republicans are still miles apart philosophically and politically about budget issues. An AP News Analysis. By Melinda Deslatte. UPCOMING: 700 words.

AP MEMBER EXCHANGES:

EXCHANGE-ORGAN DONATION

NEW ORLEANS — Two days before Christmas 2017, Shannon Munster of Marrero answered her phone to tragic news. Her 20-year-old son, Tyler, had been shot. At the hospital, Tyler’s family saw X-rays tracing the bullet’s path through his head — and learned that Tyler’s heart was still beating, but his brain activity had ceased. The family still prayed that when the life-support machines were switched off, their energetic, fun-loving Tyler would take a breath, twitch, show some sign of life. By Laura McKnight. Nola.com-The Times-Picayune.

EXCHANGE-BUSINESS-CBD OIL

LAFAYETTE, La. — Brittani Pitre doesn’t have a lot of down time in her very busy life. The LSU graduate is a wife, mother of two and small business owner in Lafayette. The LSU graduate is a wife, mother of two and small business owner in Lafayette. By Shari Puterman. The Daily Advertiser.

IN BRIEF:

— FARMER TRAINING — Beginner farmers in New Orleans have the option of a free yearlong training program, called Grow Louisiana.

— OFFICER TRAINING— State police say a Louisiana State Trooper shot and injured a person with a weapon. Local news outlets report that the shooting happened early Sunday morning in New Orleans.

— FATAL PLANE CRASH — Coroners have identified the final two people killed when a small Chicago-bound jet crashed shortly after taking off from a southern Indiana airport. The Clark County coroner’s office said Saturday that the Friday crash killed the pilot, 32-year-old Andrew Davis of Sellersburg, Indiana, and 54-year-old passenger Sandra Holland Johnson of Shreveport, Louisiana.

SPORTS

College Football

FBC--COLLEGE FOOTBALL PLAYOFF

NEW YORK — An overview of who’s in, who’s out, and who’s controversial. By College Football Writer Ralph D. Russo. Announcement scheduled for noon ET. UPCOMING: 800 words, photos by 3 p.m.

FBC--BOWL DAY

A look at who is going to which of the 40 postseason bowl games. UPCOMING: 400 words, photos. Developing

— FBC--ORANGE BOWL. A look at who gets into the bowl in Miami, which this year is hosting one of the CFP semifinals

— FBC--SUGAR BOWL. A look at who gets into the New Year’s Day bowl in New Orleans

— FBC--PEACH BOWL. A look at who gets into the New Year’s Day bowl in Atlanta

MISSISSIPPI (All Times Central)

TOP STORIES:

UNDER THE CAPITOL DOME-ANALYSIS

JACKSON, Miss. — Mike Espy lost a hard-fought U.S. Senate runoff in Mississippi last week but had the strongest showing of any Democrat running for that office in the past 30 years in a state where Republicans have steadily increased their power. By Emily Wagster Pettus. UPCOMING: 600 words.

AP MEMBER EXCHANGES:

MS-EXCHANGE-PASTOR’S UNEXPECTED LOVE

CLINTON, Miss. — Jay Barfield has extra pillows on his couch. He has candles burning throughout his home. Photos removed from drawers and displayed in frames. Three levels of comforters on his bed. By Billy Watkins. The Clarion Ledger. SENT: 1370 words

MS-EXCHANGE-HISTORIC SCHOOLHOUSE

HATTIESBURG, Miss. — Hidden in the center courtyard of Owings-McQuagge Hall on the Southern Miss campus is a piece of Mississippi history many people may not know exists. It’s Roberts Schoolhouse — a one-room, wood-frame schoolhouse from the late 1800s that was moved to the University of Southern Mississippi in 1981. “Most people don’t know it’s there, including many faculty, staff and students,” said Trenton Gould, interim dean of the College of Education and Human Sciences, which is housed in the hall. By Ellen Ciurczak. The Hattiesburg American. SENT 972 words

IN BRIEF:

— ALCORN STATE-COMMENCEMENT — An Alcorn State graduate and current board member of the university’s foundation will give the keynote address at this year’s fall commencement.

SPORTS

College Football

FBC--COLLEGE FOOTBALL PLAYOFF

NEW YORK — An overview of who’s in, who’s out, and who’s controversial. By College Football Writer Ralph D. Russo. Announcement scheduled for noon ET. UPCOMING: 800 words, photos by 3 p.m.

FBC--BOWL DAY

A look at who is going to which of the 40 postseason bowl games. UPCOMING: 400 words, photos. Developing

— FBC--ORANGE BOWL. A look at who gets into the bowl in Miami, which this year is hosting one of the CFP semifinals

— FBC--SUGAR BOWL. A look at who gets into the New Year’s Day bowl in New Orleans

— FBC--PEACH BOWL. A look at who gets into the New Year’s Day bowl in Atlanta

BKW--T25-MISSISSIPPI ST-TEXAS

AUSTIN, Texas — No. 6 Mississippi State and No. 10 Texas meet Sunday in an early-season clash of two teams that will have eyes on the Final Four. By Jim Vertuno. UPCOMING: 600 words, photos.

Women’s Basketball

BKW--T25-MISSISSIPPI ST-TEXAS

AUSTIN, Texas — No. 6 Mississippi State and No. 10 Texas meet Sunday in an early-season clash of two teams that will have eyes on the Final Four. By Jim Vertuno. UPCOMING: 600 words, photos.

___

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